You might have heard a thing or two about Stephen King’s The Stand lately. The epic book is being adapted once again, this time by streamer CBS All Access, and the first of nine episodes premieres tomorrow. The reviews for the limited series have been mixed but mostly positive, with serious accolades being directed towards some performances and the gory make-up effects.
There is a lot of excitment about the upcoming show, including from this very site. I have repeatedly gone on and on about the series and my love for the source material. For many like myself, tonight is akin to Christmas Eve just hours before St. Steve comes sliding down the chimney with a horrorifc holiday goodie.
A lot of people are ready and eager for The Stand. But why? What makes the story so special and why are so many Stephen King fans ravenous in their love for it? With just hours to go before the first episode debuts, it felt like now was the right time for a little crash-course in Captain Trips and the adapations that have come before, for those who aren’t obsessed with Stephen King to an unhealthy degree.
The Book
Simply put, The Stand is about the end of the world. Mostly.
The novel, originally published in 1978, centers on a man-made plague that decimates all of civilization and the aftermath that follows. Those who are lucky (?) enough to be immune find themselves in a post-apocalyptic landscape that is being divided by good and evil. In one corner, Mother Abagail, an 108-year-old woman from Nebraska who is appearing in dreams and beckoning all those pure of heart. And in the other corner, the heavyweight champ of evil Randall Flagg, a semi-demonic man who has magical abilities and also appears in dreams but with the opposite desire of Abagail. As both sides begin to hobble together something that resembles society, they have to grapple with the idea that soon they will come to head in some sort of battle or — wait for it — stand.
The book contains hundreds of characters and dozens of lead heroes and villains. The plot jumps all over the U.S., from Las Vegas to Arkansas to Texas and New York. It hopscotches through multiple genres too. There is action, adventure, romance and even a bit of politial science and sociology thrown in too. This is a Stephen King novel though so there is lots and lots of horror. The first couple-hundred pages of the book are especailly creepy and graphic. More on that later…
Why is it so loved?
The Stand is King’s greatest work and possibly one of the best American novels ever made. The author set out to make his Lord of the Rings and he absolutely accomplished that feat. It is an epic story, a journey that pits evil versus good and it feels as mammoth as you’d expect.
People adore this novel because it packs so much in. The plot is compelling and impossible to pull away from. As I mentioned, the first section of the novel, the part where socitey is disintegrating, contains some of King’s best writing. The man was obviously having a blast writing about the downfall of civilization and it shows. Readers tear through that initial calamity with glee because it is written by a master at the top of his game. There is some truly disturbing, horrorific stuff as the novel’s first third unfolds. King perfectly captures just how terrifying and dreadful the ends times could be. Page after page of death and human suffering and institutions collapsing. It’s a lot but it written marvelously.
The rest of the book is also crammed with quality content. The apocalypse is a tool that King uses to sweep the board clean and lay the groundwork for a massive and thrilling human drama that culminates in the sort of life-or-death stand-off you’d expect.
The Stand has an incredible plot but what really keeps people coming back is King’s character work. He creates some of his most memorable roles in The Stand. Characters like Stu Redman, Lloyd Henreid, Nadine Cross, Harold Lauder, Frannie Goldsmith — these are King all-timers, packed with humanity and reality. Their stories are engaging and their arcs fascinating. Each chapter is like a short story you can’t put down. There are troublesome characters too and some of the tropes that will make you cringe (King’s earlier work was…promblematic to put it gently) but generally the characters are the best of King’s career. You give a damn about these people, you want to see their conclusions. Whether good or bad, every lead chracter in The Stand is fascinating.
Of course, then there is Randall Flagg. Flagg is the epitome of evil and like the best devils in literature and movies, he is charismatic and somewhat charming in a wicked way. The work King does with Flagg is out-of-this-world good, this is obviously a character that King was born to write and most of the material with Flagg absolutely sings throughout the novel. The Stand is King’s magnum opus but Randall Flagg may just be his greatest creation.
The original mini-series
In 1994, ABC released a four-part mini-series based on the novel, written by King himself and directed by horror master Mick Garris. The cast consisted of Gary Sinise, Molly Ringwald, Rob Lowe and Jamey Sheridan as Flagg.
For its time, the mini-series was something special to behold. It had a impresive budget, numerous locations and special effects that were cutting-edge for network TV. The series had a lot going for it. However, it was also a reeled-in version of the novel. Obviously the limitations of televison required that King neuter his novel in some major ways and while Garris’s series never felt like a G-rated version of the story, it certainly felt PG-13 at best. It also contained some painfully corny moments and awkward performances, trappings that were the norm for 90s TV.
Still, it had some standout moments. Ed Harris as a detoriating military official who is watching everything go to hell is fantastic, as is Sinise as Stu. Sheridan does wonderful work with what he’s given, he totally understood the character and just how to capture him. The make-up was quite impressive too, they make the killer virus look particuarlly gnarly.
It has its shortcomings and problems but fans of The Stand still hold a special place in their hearts for the ‘94 mini-series. It wasn’t as good as the book but, hey, what is?
The Comic Book
From 2008 to 2012, Marvel released a comic adaptation of The Stand from writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and artists Mike Perkins and Laura Martin. They split the novel into 31 issues and based their work on King’s unabridged version of The Stand, a move that made fans really happy.
While the comic series was much more faithful to the book than the ‘94 mini-series, it still had its problem. For one, the art doesn’t quite capture the book in the ways it should. Perkins is a terrific artist but some of his characters look awkward and bizarre. The coloring and lighting is also a problem, with many scenes looking too dark and shadowy. Other artistic choices, like the decision to often hide Flagg’s face behind his long dark hair, just feel like missed opportunities.
The writing also has troubles. Much of the comic relies on lifting direct passages from the book, breaking them into captions for the reader to follow. It feels like a lazy move, an over-reliance on the source material. Obviously no fan wanted Aguiree-Sacasa to deviate too much from King’s work but literally taking his words and translating them to the page just doesn’t play well. In some ways, the writing feels too faithful to the book, if that is possible. It comes across as a copy-paste job.
The comic series did provide some great visuals though and the gory symptoms of Captain Trips are particuarly memorable.
The CBS All Access Series
Fans have always longed for a faithful, mature and long adaptation of King’s novel. Many wished for a three-part movie series or an entire show airing on a network like HBO or Showtime.
The property bounced around Hollywood a lot in the last decade, with directors like Scott Cooper, Ben Affleck and David Yates becoming attached at one point. Eventually the task fell upon Josh Boone, the filmmaker behind The Fault in our Stars and The New Mutants. While his track record might not excite you right off the bat, Boone is an avid and rabid King fanatic. He has been a devoted follower of the author since childhood and has been obsessed with The Stand just like the rest of us. In many ways, he was the perfect choice to create a new adapation.
After toying with a movie series, Boone ended up with a nine-episode series at CBS All Access. Boone produced, co-write and directed a couple episodes and lured in much of the cast, including James Marsden, Alexander Skarsgard, Whoopi Goldberg and more. He promised what every fan desires: an authentic, adult and epic version of the novel.
That version begins airing tomorrow and committed King followers are cautiously optimistic. On one hand, The Stand on a streaming service that doesn’t have to hold back in terms of gore and language and adult themes sounds fantastic. On the other hand, some of the changes Boone and his team have made (the non-linear plot structure has already irked some) have people holding their breath.
It remains to be seen just how good this take of The Stand will be. Hopes are high! But there is a chance that this adaptation, like the ones before it, won’t perfectly capture just what makes the novel so special and beloved. That’s okay because no matter how good or bad any other version is, King’s original novel will forever be a towering achievement that will never be rivaled.
